GameCube

Battalion Wars

In the end, Battalion Wars did a great job of bring together two genre's of gaming that are naturally hard to combine into a good game. However they could have improved on a number of things to make this game extremely good. So if your looking for a good, hard strategy game that will keep you entertained for a number of hours, be sure to pick this one up.

Battalion Wars used to be part of -- and still belongs with -- the Advance Wars universe. The game shares so many similarities with its handheld-based brethren that it's impossible to ignore the influences. Both franchises, for example, pit players in control of military squads and challenge them to manage units and both games hide surprisingly well-crafted strategy systems under their relaxed, comic book style exteriors.

Unfortunately, once you're done with the game's campaign, which should take you around eight to 10 hours, there isn't much left to do aside from replay missions to increase your score, because Battalion Wars lacks any multiplayer or other additional modes. It's still quite a fun ride while it lasts though, so if you're a fan of action strategy games, or were just looking for a military-style game that doesn't take itself too seriously, you won't go wrong picking up Battalion Wars.

A Gamecube version of Advance Wars DS, the task Nintendo gave Kuju Entertainment was certainly not easy. A tactical multiplayer made Advance Wars successful. One look at the box reveals that there isn’t a multiplayer mode in Battalion Wars. We immediately found the first big mistake!

In spite of this, Battalion Wars is a great title which captures the spirit of Advance Wars and makes it work as an RTS. It's fast, furious and most importantly fun to play, but the victory is short-lived. For shame, Kuju.

With a decent style, flair, and humor level, Battalion Wars does fine for itself as mindless entertainment. The T rating is a bit harsh since the cartoonish stylings, total lack of gore, and no language seem to be aimed at kids ready to step into the realm of E10 titles. This harmless little war game isn't a classic, but it's fun and a nice change of pace to the complicated shooters out there.

My experience with Battalion Wars left me with a few mixed emotions. First of all, I really like the concept behind the game, and the ability to play a strategy game in a 3-D environment has always intrigued me. Sadly, the in-game menu really made it hard to issue commands at first, and was almost the deciding factor, but in a negative way. Finally, though, once I got a convincing handle on the control scheme, that’s when the fun really started, and once that happened, it was hard to put down.

Battalion Wars eliminates RTS-anxiety with simple controls and a gameplay view that places you right into your fighting force. You lead as one of the attacking soldiers and learning how to command your units is a snap. Within no time you're a regular GameCube Patton sending infantry, bazooka men, flamethrower units, tanks, and even aerial gunships into rambunctious firefights. B-Wars does a good job of establishing its tactical challenges, and you have to exercise some strategic thinking into how to best deploy your forces and juggle them around according to the changing tide of battle. Battalion Wars is no world beater, but it's a decent workout for most armchair generals in training.

This is easily one of the best strategy titles to buy on the GameCube, if not all of the current-gen systems. Not only does it make you think about what it is you're doing rather than being a mindless run-and-gun entry, it's also amazingly fun. Do yourself a favor and pick this one up at once.

Ich weiß nicht, was Christoph will. Zwar stehe ich unterwegs ebenfalls auf Nintendos Pixelschlachten, doch zu Hause darf man es ruhig einmal kräftig krachen lassen. Die Kommandovergabe per C-Stick funktioniert gut und ermöglicht dem Spieler im Missionsverlauf zahlreiche eigene Entscheidungen, die Effekte sind außerdem klasse. Optisch enttäuscht Battalion Wars mit eckigen Baumstämmen und blockartig modellierten Hügeln.

In conclusion, Battalion Wars does have some really great parts. The scale of the environments and the cute animation are notable achievements, as are the fluidity with which the intense action moves and the way units are balanced. The action-oriented portion of the game works better than the strategic portion, which is hampered by a control scheme that’s too simple to provide enough depth. The game’s is also too short. It’s a great rental for sure.

If targeting weren’t so important and in turn broken, Battalion Wars would be an excellent game. Unfortunately, when an important component doesn’t work like it should it only makes the game seem more frustrating than fun. Granted, there are some very memorable moments that will make your palms sweat every time you play them and you’ll constantly find yourself completing an objective just in the nick of time, which really adds to the suspense and thrill. I suppose you can say that Battalion Wars is equal parts frustrating and exciting. Fans of strategy and action will eat this one up, while anyone else might want to rent it first. You never know, I could just suck when it comes to targeting, but I doubt it.

Overall, we’re dealing with a fair piece of software that should be given a try. While the story is pretty straightforward and gameplay is top-notch, the game’s replay value suffers quite heavily from the lack of a multiplayer mode. While I don’t blame Kuju for not including it as the GameCube’s online/LAN service is laughable, I still think that a multiplayer option would have made an outstanding addition to the game and would shift a lot more units past retail cashiers. Although the game is somewhat on the short side with shorter missions; it does pose a challenge if you’re not quick to learn the games dynamics. The deciding factor on whether or not you’ll enjoy this title depends on how motivated you are to complete it. If you’re stuck and don’t want to have to try a mission again to advance, this game isn’t for you.

All right, recruits, fall in. You’re no doubt familiar with Nintendo’s previous strategic combat offerings, Advance Wars and Advance Wars 2: Black Hole Rising. What? No, don’t talk to me about Fire Emblem. Son, if you can find me a flying pinto that can beat up one of these tanks, you show it to me. The point is the aforementioned Advance Wars games were good. Don’t try to deny it – they combined bright, cutesy-wootsie graphics with challenging strategic combat, and did it well, recruits. The point is the brass over at Nintendo have been kind enough to issue us a new format for this man’s army. That’s right – three dimensional real-time strategic combat that allows you, recruits, to control any individual unit under your command. Test what little mental acuity you maggots have against some fast-moving tactical combat operations.

For the right price, Battalion Wars is still worth a look, though. Despite the odd camera and control niggle, it stands out an unpretentious and largely unique example of how to blend strategy and action in a relentlessly entertaining way. The fact that there's little more to it than a solid 10 hour single player campaign will be disappointing for some, but don't let that put you off what is one of the better GameCube exclusives around at the moment - a rare beast, as we're sure you realise…

So, ye of little faith...even though it's fresh out of basic training, Battalion Wars is definitely not the disaster you thought it could be. In fact, it's a great first effort at trying to do what Nintendo does, and by aiming for that high of a target, mission objectives can be achieved.

The best part of this game is that it is not called Advance Wars. I applaud Nintendo for changing the name of the game in the eleventh hour. There's no need to tarnish one of my favorite handheld franchises with a disastrous release like this.

Before it was called Battalion Wars, this game was slated to be named Advance Wars: Under Fire. I’m glad they changed the name. Fans of the Advance Wars series would have blindly picked this game up, and found out how badly executed this console wartime strategy turned out. It’s got some great ideas going for it, allowing you to multitask and manage your own private army of hardened soldiers. The wide variety of units at your command ought to prove for some interesting tactics. However, a few fundamental flaws render such ideas completely useless. The AI is laughable, the controls are aggravating, and everything else just seems off. If you’re looking for yet another military game to invest in, look elsewhere. This war is more of a comedy than a tragedy.

We’ll never know how good Battalion Wars would be with a multiplayer mode, of course, and as such it must be judged on its single player campaign only, as…it’s the only thing that’s there. Despite its comic book stylings, anybody expecting an easy ride from the game will come away with a smacked bottom. Battalion Wars will please strategy fans with its rich mission variety and wide range of vehicles and units available to command, but everyone else will find it to be a mildly interesting diversion with a lot of scope for an improved sequel.

Though Battalion Wars’ eye candy is a treat, it doesn’t come close to redeeming the horrid action. Were the level design better or multiplayer present, it could have been at least a passable title. As it stands, though, I can’t think of a single part of this I’d like to see again – unless it’s the graphics engine being reused in a completely different game.

It is always refreshing to see a GameCube exclusive that isn't a Mario spin-off, which is why I tried so hard to like this game. Being a huge fan of Advance Wars for the DS, I was excited at the prospect of translating that same level of complexity and novelty into a 3D action game. Sadly, it just-- doesn't-- work. AI teammates are total idiots, and the controls are too convoluted to allow on-the-spot, life-or-death decisions-- which is what war is all about, isn't it? The challenge is there, and the unique gameplay blend is very captivating, but when I keep finding myself pounding the couch and screaming, "I hate this game!" something needs to change.

Nintendo and Kuju Entertainment have come together to bring you what was once going to be the first console title in the Advance Wars series. However, after a slight name change, the game abandoned the Advance Wars series, and for good reason. While Battalion Wars is a fun game for those looking to almost mindlessly blast their way to victory, trying to use any kind of strategy is difficult and troublesome thanks to the way the game controls. We've played worse on the GameCube, but we've also played a lot better.

Having played and therefore loved the Advance Wars titles, we had high hopes for this console action translation. Whoops. Battalion Wars bites off a lot more than it can chew, an unwieldy Frankenstein that doesn't live up to its innovative premise. Let this soldier die.